Adobe Acrobat came out with its Portable Document Format (PDF) file to allow for consistency in viewing and printing, irrespective of how a document was created or what type of computer it is being viewed on. With a PDF, the peace of mind comes in knowing that what you see on screen is what you’re going to get when you print.
Adobe used to really own the market when it came to the creation of PDF documents. However, today there are many programs available for which you can convert Word to PDF. Did you know that you can now create a PDF right from from Microsoft Office?
* In Word 2013, go to File > Save As > Save as Type > PDF
* In Office for Mac, go to Save As > Format > PDF.
The downside of the PDF is, of course, the inability to easily edit what you see in this type of file format. If you’re looking for the ability to edit an already created PDF, you will want to explore a Pro or paid version of Adobe Acrobat.